DC LIVE ACTION MOVIES

TOP 10

By Lee Parham

After Den of Geek fans voted through an entire bracket to decide the greatest DC live action movie ever made, we assembled a list of the Top 10.

Cover: Warner Bros./Photofest (The Dark Knight, Wonder Woman and Superman)

32 DC films entered and only one remained at the end, so these rankings are based on the number of votes each film received.

Jack Nicholson as the Joker in Batman

10

After years of online campaigning, fans rejoiced as Zack Snyder’s Justice League was finally released on HBO Max. The director's cut finally delivered a satisfying Justice League epic.

9

The latest DC film to hit theaters, James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad wowed audiences with its suprisingly heartfelt script following a group of eccentric but lovable supervillains.

8

The only DC movie to ever receive a best picture nomination, Joker told the origin story of the Clown Prince of Crime and earned Joaquin Phoenix a win for Best Actor at the Academy Awards.

7

Shazam! Billy Batson, a teenager with the ability to transform into a superhero by yelling that very word, won the hearts of audiences in this endearing family flick.

6

The film that started them all! Superman: The Movie established comic book adaptations as a viable genre and cemented Christoper Reeve as the Man of Steel.

5

The most iconic female superhero of all time, Wonder Woman, made her big screen debut in 2017 to widespread acclaim. Set in a World War I backdrop, Gal Gadot commanded the film as Diana Prince.

4

After a rough stretch in the 1990s, Christopher Nolan rebooted the Caped Crusader in Batman Begins, depicting a more grounded take on the character with a defining performance from Christian Bale.

3

Nolan completed his Batman trilogy with The Dark Knight Rises in 2012, as Batman overcame his masked adversary Bane in an epic fight across Gotham City.

2

Tim Burton began a cinematic craze in 1989 with Batman, starring Michael Keaton as the title character and featuring Jack Nicholson as the Joker in an iconic interpretation of the villain.

1

The winner of the DC Mayhem bracket was the second installment of Nolan’s trilogy, The Dark Knight. It took the world by storm, captivating audiences around the globe.

Highlighted by a superb performance from the late Heath Ledger that earned the actor a posthumous Oscar, The Dark Knight transcended the comic book genre and defined a generation.

From World War epics, space adventures, battles against giant starfish, and crime thrillers, DC movies have installed themselves as some of the genre’s best — with many more on the way.

Zachary Levi in Shazam!